Necrokinesis
by KaiserdeDiez
Summary: Danny and Annette Hebert were unable to have children of their own so they decide to adopt and thus, Taylor became a Hebert. But, little do any of them know, Taylor is actually a second-generation parahuman. AU, Alt-Power Taylor.


They say that patience is a virtue and that good things come to those who wait. I'm sure that all of that was true and very wise. However, true as those sentiments may have been waiting still sucked. I sighed as I set my book down on my bed and looked at the clock. It read midnight. Finally.

Tomorrow was the end of the winter break and my first day of school in two months and I should have been asleep by now, but I had other plans. Tomorrow I would get a fresh start. I'd be starting at a new school, away from Emma, Madison, and Sophia. I could leave all the preconceptions behind and have a real chance at friends. It was going to be a new chapter in my life, so I thought it was a perfect time for me starting another new aspect of my identity.

Tonight would mark my debut as a hero. That was why I was staying up so late. I wanted to make sure that Dad would be asleep to better avoid him. I didn't want him worrying about me and that would be easiest if he didn't even know I was doing this.

I put on my housecoat, snuck out of my room, and made my way down to the basement. After Mom died, Dad eventually moved her things down there. Now he avoided it like the plague. He only went down there when had to check on something important, like the water heater. However, all of the important appliances like that were in the main room which meant that there were several adjacent rooms that he never went into. It gave me a place I could hide and assemble my costume (as simple as it was). It was a small, small silver lining in the dark cloud of my mother's death.

I opened the door to the far room and turned on the light revealing my costume jumbled in a pile in the corner next to a black garbage bag. It was, for the most part, pretty simple. I closed the door behind me and took off my housecoat, leaving me in a black sports bra and shorts. As the cold set into my skin I quickly started rummaging through my costume to get the first layer on. It was just a plain, white long-sleeved shirt followed by a pair of white tights. Once I had the first layer on I started adding my armor. A series of beef ribs of varying size and curvature started floating out of the bag and heading toward me. One by one they set themselves on my body with the shorter, more sharply curved ones settling onto my arms and legs.

This was my power, as gross as it was. I could control dead flesh and bone and I could even reshape it, like bending a rib to better fit a specific part of my body. It was also why I wanted to layers. I didn't want to be seen just running around wearing a suit of bone armor, but I definitely didn't want to have those bones pressed right up against my skin.

Getting all of these cow ribs had actually been easier than I had thought it would be. There were plenty of butchers and meat shops around town. Collecting the ribs was as simple as levitating any ribs they might have thrown out into a trash bag. Of course, I also used my power to strip the meat from the bones and remove the marrow from the center. I didn't want to deal with whatever diseases rotting flesh could bring about. As soon as I got home I also made sure to dunk the bones in a tub full of peroxide and I collapsed the cavity that held the marrow. That way I had a solid chunk of bone protecting me.

Once my bone armor was held in place I pulled a white hoodie on over it as well as a pair of white sweat pants. It would help keep me warm in the cold winter air and I hoped the color would help disguise the fact that I had bone all over my body. I had also sown a small pocket with a zipper into the front pocke. I was using it to store a few things. Spare change in case I needed to use a pay phone, a few zip ties, and a can of pepper spray that Dad had made me promise to keep with me whenever I went out for a run.

I snuck my way back up to the first floor and went to the back door. As quietly as I could I opened it and crept out. Then I closed and locked it and returned the spare key to its hiding place. It was a decently warm night for winter. It wasn't even cold enough for snow, yet. Between the physical activity and the sweat clothes I figured I would stay warm enough.

I turned and began running toward the Docks. It was the closest part of town to my house, which is why I chose it for my heroic debut. I would have more time to spend patrolling for trouble. More chances to make my first impression.

I started off toward the north end of the Docks. I was sticking with a light jog for now. I didn't want to risk exhausting myself before I even had a chance to make my mark. Ever since I had decided to be a hero three months ago, I had taken to going on morning runs, trying to improve my speed and endurance. If I ended up getting in over my head it could be the small advantage that would let me get away alive. It would make covering ground in search of trouble easier.

As I headed north I could see the state of the neighborhood decline rapidly. The part of the Docks adjacent to my house was in decent shape. There was relatively little crime, though it did border on some rougher areas. However, the farther north you went the worse it got. First there were a few houses with boarded up windows. They weren't abandoned, just in disrepair.

Then the houses really were abandoned. A bit further and there were more abandoned houses and businesses than any that were functional. Then you had the northern third of the Docks, which was almost solely populated by the homeless trying to get out of the elements and criminals trying to operate under the radar. It was also a major area of contention between the Empire Eighty-Eight and the ABB. Whether there was something there that was actually valuable to them or if they were just using the area as an excuse to fight each other, I didn't know.

In a twisted way it was a perfect summation of Brockton Bay's recent history. It started out decent but saw a rapid decline with and even bleaker future ahead while being fought over by parahuman gangs. Meanwhile, it was surrounded by populations that were barely affected and looked on either unable to help or too apathetic to bother. Often both.

As I reached about the middle of the Docks (where abandoned buildings became more common than their occupied counterparts) I eventually heard…something coming from down the street. It sounded like someone was talking, but it was too far away to make out any details. The only reason I was able to hear it at all was because this area was pretty much deserted. No people meant very little noise.

As I jogged to the area it became clear that I was definitely hearing someone talk and it didn't sound pleasant. The voice sounded female and also sounded very angry. As soon as I was able to make out what was being said I slowed to a crawl. As I neared the corner I was able to make out what was being said.

"I asked you where she was!" The shout was followed by thud and a grunt of pain. It sounded like another woman.

"I told you we didn't take her, you crazy bitch!" The words were followed by a moan of pain.

"Bullshit!" I heard another thud and a crack.

"Fuck! You broke my nose!" The second voice now had a nasal tone to it.

"Then tell me where she is you nazi bitch!" As I crept around the corner I saw two people at the edge of a parking lot. They were by the wall of an abandoned-looking warehouse with one woman sitting against the wall and the other standing crouched over her. The sitting woman had her arms behind her back, probably tied, and was white with blond hair. From here I could see the blood streaming down the front of her face.

The other girl (she sounded roughly teenaged I thought) had her back to me, so I couldn't see much other than the fact that she was wearing a hooded cloak. Then I noticed the crossbow hanging by her hip. It was Shadow Stalker.

I just wanted my first night as a hero to be straight-forward. Find some thugs mugging a guy, knock them out, and call the cops. Now I had a _Ward_ beating a nazi for information. Well, fuck.

"Look, a girl goes missing on the edge of Empire territory. It's not exactly hard to figure out what happened!" I stayed low and kept creeping closer. I felt my trepidation rise with every step. On the one hand, I absolutely did _not_ want my start as a hero to include a confrontation with the Wards. On the other hand, as much as I wanted to just say that a Ward was on site, that it was being handled, and just forget I saw it my conscience refused to leave me alone.

If PHO was to be believed, then Shadow Stalker had been brought in by the Protectorate for excessive force. A lot of excessive force. Like leaving someone crucified to a wall and left to die. She then joined the Wards on probation. If the PHO rumor mill was accurate, then beating information out of a restrained woman was a huge breach of her probation, neo-nazi or not.

If this ever came to light Shadow Stalker's freedom would be in jeopardy. Shadow Stalker had made this woman's very existence a threat. Of course, that was only if she lived. Given the Ward's previous behavior, this woman's life was forfeit. I couldn't see a way that this didn't escalate badly.

The woman spit some blood off to the side. "Go beat on the Merchants, dumbshit! This is right up their alley! I hear they've been kidnapping people all over the place lately."

"You're awfully quick to rat out your fellow criminals. Besides, this isn't even Merchant territory," the Ward rebutted.

"You're goddamn right I'm ratting those shit heels out! The more pressure you fucks put on them the better for us!"

Shadow Stalker snorted. "You didn't answer my whole question. What are you doing letting the Merchants run around in your territory?" The nazi woman simply remained silent. She merely gave Shadow Stalker a death stare.

As I watched my mind warred with itself. I knew that if I didn't stop this soon the woman would die painfully. But another part of my mind told me fighting with another cape, more experienced than myself and violent, was a terrible idea. My conscience and my self-preservation instinct were struggling to control my body.

Then I saw Shadow Stalker reach underneath her cloak and draw out a knife. "Fine, if you won't talk freely I'm just going to have to make you!"

I didn't have any more time to think about it. Without thinking about it I stood up and a piece of my armor was in my hand instantly. I threw it at Shadow Stalker and used my power to guide the rib toward the knife in her hand. It hit the blade and I made the rib fold around the metal, carrying it off.

Shadow Stalker was upright and facing me in a heartbeat. She tilted her head toward the bound woman a bit. "So, is this some knew dipshit recruit of your's? Don't you nazi fucks have enough capes?"

Shit. In retrospect, wearing an all-white costume near neo-nazi territory wasn't the best idea I had ever had. Then Shadow Stalker started walking toward me and drew her crossbow. You know what? You suck conscience.

 **Author's Note:** So, I could not find any indication of where the Empire's territory actually was or who bordered their territory.


End file.
